PENNSYLVANIA, USA — A new variant of COVID-19 has begun to spread throughout Europe, with the possibility of coming to the United States in the near future.
The variant- known as XEC- has appeared in at least 27 countries in Europe, North Africa and Asia along with the United States. At this time, the variant is primarily based in Europe.
Infectious disease experts say the variant is more transmittable than its predecessors.
"It appears to have a reproductive advantage over the other variants, and as a result, it's spreading rapidly in Europe," said Dr. John Goldman, an infectious disease specialist with UPMC.
Dr. Goldman says that previous trends would indicate that a surge in Europe would likely lead to a similar surge in the United States.
"If it transmits itself more easily than the variants that are here, we expect it to also take over in the United States," Dr. Goldman said. "We'd expect it to come in the fall or the winter months because there has typically been a surge [at that time]."
Despite its contagiousness, Dr. Goldman says there is no evidence to suggest that XEC is more harmful than previous variants.
"There's no evidence so far that the XEC variant produces an increase in deaths, an increase in hospitalizations or more severe disease," Dr. Goldman said. "What I would expect with the XEC variant is that we will see a 'surge' in cases, but there's no evidence that it's causing more severe disease than the older variants."
Dr. Goldman says that new variations of the COVID-19 booster shot will be more effective against the new variant and that people should receive the shot, especially senior citizens.